President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. will be embarking on state visits to Indonesia and Singapore in September, Malacañang announced on Friday.
Mr. Marcos will first visit Indonesia from Sept. 4 to 6, and will proceed to Singapore from Sept. 6 to 7, Press Secretary Trixie Cruz-Angeles said in a virtual presser.
“We don’t have additional details, but we are confirming that [his state visits] will push through,” Cruz-Angeles said.
A head of state embarks on a state visit upon the invitation of the leader of the host country.
Cruz-Angeles said Mr. Marcos has also accepted the invitation of United States President Joe Biden to visit Washington.
No date has been set yet for the visit to the US, Cruz-Angeles said.
“For the visit to the US, it’s still being worked out although the President said he will be going. So, we will release the details on this as they come in,” she said.
In July, Mr. Marcos also accepted the Chinese government’s invitation to visit China.
The visits next month are keeping with the tradition among Philippine presidents of choosing a Southeast Asian nation for their first foreign trips.
Philippine Ambassador to Washington Jose Manuel Romualdez earlier said Singapore was considered because it also extended an invitation for Mr. Marcos to do a state visit.
The planned visit will precede Marcos’ possible trip to the United States for his attendance at the United Nations’ General Assembly (UNGA), Romualdez said.
The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) is already fixing Marcos’ schedule, according to Romualdez, based on his recent meeting with Foreign Affairs Secretary Enrique Manalo.
The UNGA is the main policy-making organ of the United Nations. The decisions it makes include appointing the secretary-general, electing the non-permanent members of the Security Council, and approving the UN budget, according to the UN website.
The Assembly meets in regular sessions from September to December each year. Vince Lopez